


Twist of Fate

by mayers



Category: Switched at Birth (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:34:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28140021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mayers/pseuds/mayers
Summary: After a strange and unlucky year, Bay hopes winter will bring a fresh start with brand new memories. But when life takes some unexpected turns and Emmett reaches out to her, Bay wonders just how much of the past she wants to forget.
Relationships: Emmett Bledsoe/Bay Kennish
Comments: 1
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

The colors were refusing to fuse the way she needed them to. Bay kept frustratingly dabbing her paintbrush against the mess of a palate, knowing she was close to finishing this piece. She just wasn’t happy with it. Not yet.

A reassuring hand rested on her shoulder. Bay turned to see Emmett smiling down at her. Her chest warmed immediately.

“I can’t get this right,” Bay mumbled, shaking her head. He flaunted the coy smile he always offered her whenever she was discouraged, and sat on the sand beside her.

Of course you can, he signed.

Bay smirked before looking out to the ocean. From the corner of her eye, she saw that her boyfriend was doing the same.

Her eyes floated back down to the painting to notice that it completely changed. It was beautiful. Perfect. Did she do this?

Emmett kissed her temple, making her melt and revel in the feeling of pure peace and satisfaction.

Bay’s alarm clock plunged her into reality, its blaring invading every one of her senses. She blindly reached for her phone to turn the snooze on, bringing her blanket up to her chin and exhaling.

The bright glow of the morning sun coming in through her window was strong, even with her eyelids closed, as she silently wished to go back to her dream. To feel that happiness again. A few seconds in, she realized exactly what it is that she was doing. She slowly opened her eyes to stare ahead at her closet door.

Did she seriously just dream about Emmett?

Bay stretched her legs out under the weight of her comforter, feeling irritated by the intrusion. As if she needed to be reminded of him again.

The grinding noise of the blender suddenly spilled in from the kitchen. For once, Bay didn’t mind Daphne’s loud morning routine. At least she couldn’t drift back into that… odd dream.

Once Bay made her way into the kitchen, arms crossed and slippers dragging, she saw Daphne packing her lunch. Daphne noticed her sister and smiled.

“Hey!” Daphne placed a straw into the glass she set for Bay.

“How are you always such a morning person?” Bay muttered, sliding onto the stool. Daphne shot a wrinkled-nose smile. Bay grinned and took a sip of her strawberry banana smoothie. She loved the days when Daphne’s timetable allowed her to share her morning with Bay. And her smoothie.

“Did you sleep well?” Daphne asked. Bay’s wrinkled forehead gave her answer away.

“Well, I dreamt about my ex,” she admitted. “So, that’s fun.”

Daphne’s eyebrows furrowed in empathy.

Guilt passed through Bay. Granted, it’d been a bit over three months since she and Travis split, but if she was going to dream about any ex, she felt that it should have been her most recent one.

“Not that ex. Emmett.” She couldn’t remember the last time she signed his name.

“Oh.” Daphne closed her lunch box. “And?”

“It was…” Bay groaned, shaking her head. “I’d rather not think about it anymore.”

Daphne nodded understandingly.

“It’s just,” Bay began, “I don’t get it. It felt like… we were together. And I was happy. But, I have no desire to be with him again.”

“None at all?” Daphne raised her eyebrows. “Maybe some part of you, some subconscious part-”

“Hey, you’re studying medicine, not psychology,” Bay retorted. Daphne snorted at her sudden rush to defend herself and shrugged her shoulders.

“How are you feeling about it? Honestly?”

Bay swallowed another mouthful of her smoothie.

“Annoyed. I finally feel better about Travis.” Bay thought back to the nights of lying on the couch and alternating between binging art documentaries and crying to Daphne. “Why is my brain deciding to pull this crap?”

“I’m not studying psychology,” Daphne chuckled. Bay laughed and rolled her eyes, standing up to make toast.

“You know what?” Bay said. “I’m going to be nice to you only because I know you have that midterm today.”

After eating breakfast and trying her best to boost Daphne’s confidence for her test, Bay made her way to Bombshell Betty’s. She was opening that morning, which was a responsibility she had Jordan DeVille to thank for. After scoring the opportunity to ink the celebrity, who was probably the most intimidating customer Bay had ever had, Noelle started to trust Bay with more duties once her clientele skyrocketed. Even though she was still considered an apprentice, Bay felt much more necessary to the operation.

Bay settled into her usual seat on the bus she took everyday, and studied the poster lining the corridor of the bus. She looked over an ad for a yoga studio that promised the exercise would lead to better sleep. She squeezed her fingers, unable to let go of the memory of her dream. Weren’t dreams supposed to be forgettable? Why couldn’t her brain launch this one into oblivion like so many of her past ones?

It just had felt so real. She thought back to the feeling of total harmony her dream had given her. Why Emmett? She had dreamt about Travis since the breakup. Even though it was a civil split, mainly based on the fact that distance made keeping up a fulfilling relationship all too difficult, she’d had some awful dreams about the ordeal.

But she hadn’t dreamt about Emmett in… ages.

It had to be because of the quickly approaching Christmas holiday. She had planned to visit Travis then and… because it was only a little over a week away now and Emmett would’ve also been there and she wasn’t feeling totally healed just yet, everything must have simply stirred up bad feelings. 

That was it. It had to be.

She made it to work by 10:15. Being alone in the parlour always made Bay feel calm. She turned on the radio to listen to the local rock station, went through her appointments for the day, and had the time to add to her portfolio in complete peace.

That is, until her phone screen lit up with the word ‘Mom.’ Bay answered the call.

“Hi, honey,” Kathryn said. “How are you doing?”

“Not bad. What’s up?”

“I wanted to confirm our plans for Christmas Eve.” Bay chewed on her lip. That was already next week. “I know we said you and Daphne would be here around 5 o’clock, but I was thinking maybe a bit earlier would be better. 3:00? Or possibly before that? I have some ideas for some fun activities.”

“We might as well sleep over the night before,” Bay quipped. Her eyes widened once she realized her mom might actually like the idea. They were already sleeping over Christmas Eve. That was enough. “No, uh, 3:00 is perfect. I’ll check with Daphne, but I think that’ll be okay.”

“Wonderful,” her mom chimed. “Well, I’ve got an appointment with a client in a bit! Love you, talk to you later.”

“Love you, too,” Bay said. She hung up and smiled to herself. After the success of her books, Kathryn naturally wanted to stick to writing, but she later started to gravitate towards event planning and took some courses and landed a job at a local event planning company. It had made perfect sense to Bay, considering how her entire childhood was filled with extravagant birthdays and ornate parties that her mother had put together.

After their ‘DNA party,’ Kathryn was particularly inspired to see what else she could do, and that turned into a dream, which turned into a job. Although Kathryn was just a beginner and had a long way to go at Without a Hitch, she was never one to give up easy. 

Bay was already picturing what Christmas would look like this time. Past years had already been quite decorated and eventful, but Bay had a feeling that this Christmas would be one of the most memorable.

Once the parlour was open for business, Bay’s first appointment walked in right on time. She’d been working with a woman named Mila, a 30-something-year-old bouncer. She was tall, intimidating, and a total scatterbrain. She and Bay had been working on designing a sleeve tattoo for her, and every time Bay thought they were getting somewhere, Mila would decide on another concept.

This was something Bay hadn’t been expecting to deal with so much as a tattoo artist. In China, she was working in a walk-in shop, where the only time she had to speak with a client was while inking them. But at Bombshell Betty’s, the amount of meetings and the duration of consultations with clients before they finally sat down to get inked wasn’t very easy for Bay to handle. Patience wasn’t always her strong suit, but she understood that it was part of the job. And she was lucky to have one.

“Morning,” Mila said, her heavy boots thumping against the floor. “How are you?”

“Good, thanks,” Bay answered, shuffling over to her stool. “You?”

“Well, I’m rethinking the whole spiderweb thing,” Mila began. She routinely sat in Bay’s chair as Bay dug out the notebook they’d been filling together. “I’ve been doing some research and I saw this thing where this guy had a bar of musical notes wrapping around his arm to fill in the space between separate pieces. I thought that might be cool.”

Bay plastered on the best smile she could. Would this lady ever make up her mind?

“That sounds cool,” she said, looking down at the piece that took her an hour to finish last time they’d met. “So, you’re thinking no spiderwebs at all?”

“Nah, you know what? I don’t even like spiders.”

Just then, Noelle sauntered in, holding a Starbucks cup. Bay had noticed that Noelle had been spending less and less time at the parlour; coming in late, leaving early. Bay figured that she was simply easing up on her workload once she realized that Bay could be counted on.

“Hey,” Bay acknowledged. Noelle nodded. Bay looked back to Mila, whose big brown eyes were following Noelle as she made her way to the back of the parlour.

“Hi,” Mila said quietly. Noelle didn’t hear.

“So, music notes?” Bay asked.

Mila turned her attention back to Bay.

“Uh, yes.”

After an hour of working on a whole other idea for a sleeve, Mila thanked Bay for her time and booked another consultation for the end of the week.

Once she cleaned up, Bay stood at the front desk. As usual, she took some time to check the parlour’s social media accounts to see if they had any new comments or questions.

Bay looked over at Noelle, who was focused on stenciling a small piece on her current client’s back. The client, a young blonde, was yammering on about something regarding gymnastics. Yet another thing Bay wasn’t expecting with this job. The free therapy you had to give clients.

Bay couldn’t believe that Noelle, who was intimidating her just a few months ago, trusted her so much now. Noelle certainly wasn’t the type to show appreciation through words, so her gestures definitely made it known that she was grateful for Bay. And based on the amount of work Noelle had clearly been doing on her own before Bay came in, she understood why.

Bay took her free window of time to text Daphne about Christmas.

‘K wants us to show up at 3 instead of 5 on Monday. That ok with you?’

Bay went through her other phone notifications while she had time. She saw an email notification and clicked it, tapping her shoe to the jingle on the radio.

Her heart dropped once she read the words on her screen.

Subject line: ‘Hey.’

From: ‘Emmett Bledsoe.’

Bay’s thumb hovered over the email from Emmett. She could see the beginning of whatever he’d written her.

‘Hi, Bay. How have you been? We’re in Nagoya right now and it’s been raining nonstop. I can’t remember…’

She swallowed hard. This had to be a joke. She dreams about him and then he emails her that day, totally out of the blue? They’d barely spoken since he left. What the hell?

The bell over the door chimed and Bay quickly tucked her phone into her back pocket, ready to greet the customer.

“Hi, there,” Bay announced, sounding way less enthused than she had hoped.

The man, who looked to be in his late twenties, stared at the ground as he paced towards the desk. He scratched the back of his neck and finally met eyes with Bay.

“You guys do walk-ins?” he mumbled.

“Yes.” Bay quickly glanced over at Noelle, who looked at the guy for a second and then immediately went back to working on her client. “What can I help you with?”

“Well…” The guy rested his elbows on the counter, his lips thinned. “I got a little too wasted a while back and… you can imagine why I’m here.”

Bay nodded solemnly.

The customer eventually told her that he’d drunkenly got a tattoo of a peace sign on his chest. Bay didn’t realize how bad it was until he showed her the jagged doodle on his sternum. She calmed him down and got to work.

A little while later, Bay helped modify the image and was able to do what she did best: focus on the tattoo and nothing else.

Afterwards, she went on her lunch break, frustrated by the fact that drunk tattoos were still a thing. Bay sat in the back of the shop, hearing Noelle’s latest client wincing under the needle.

She sighed to herself, pulling out her phone to finally read the rest of the email.

‘Hi, Bay.

How have you been?

We’re in Nagoya right now and it’s been raining nonstop. I can’t remember the last time KC had this much downpour. This past week has been pretty bad, but it’s given me the opportunity to snap a lot of cool shots. The rain really brings out the color in the city.

I attached some photos I took to this email. The last one reminded me of you. How has work been? Any cool new designs you’ve come up with?

All the best,  
Emmett’

She opened the email attachments. Emmett had sent her four photos; one was of the Tokyo skyline in the sunshine, another was of an array of neon lights on a dark and rainy night, the next presented a look at some colourful street art on the side of a bridge, and the last was of a t-shirt on a hanger in a shop. The words on the shirt read ‘Short but fierce!’ in a bright pink font.

Bay stared at her screen. Thought back to her dream. She couldn’t help but wonder how much Emmett knew about her breakup with Travis. What had Travis told him? And why was Emmett reaching out? What were his motives?

She impulsively navigated back to her last emails with Travis. They had ultimately decided to break up over video chat, but had exchanged a couple messages the next day.

Bay remembered waking up to Travis’ email the night after.

‘I’m sorry it ended this way. You deserve the best.’

She navigated back to her reply, sent August 4th.

‘Me, too. Good luck.’

Bay felt a chill go down her body. Even though it’d been awhile since their breakup, it still tugged at her heartstrings to reread these messages. She remembered the utter shock she felt when things with Travis began to south. Things had felt so strong before. So sure. But with the distance and his absence, by the end, their relationship was more stressful than anything else.

She spent the rest of her lunch break on Instagram, not ready to even think about what to answer Emmett with just yet. Even though they were on good terms and she hadn’t been harbouring any negativity against him, the fact that he was her ex-boyfriend and he was in a country on the other side of the world with her other ex-boyfriend was just… weird.

By the end of the day, Bay was exhausted. Once the last customer left the shop for the day, she promptly started cleaning up.

“Got a call today from a guy asking for a discount,” Noelle announced. Bay looked up to see her passing by with a tray.

“For?”

“He just… wanted a discount.”

Bay cackled.

“And that entitles him to one?” Bay quipped.

“Apparently.”

“I’d love to live in that world.”

“Hey, you okay to open tomorrow, too?” Noelle asked. She stopped to look at Bay and pressed her lips together, her perfect purple lipstick refusing to smudge.

“Sure.”

“Great.” Noelle nodded and gave her a small smile before turning back to her equipment.

Once the day was over and Noelle had left, Bay went through the next day’s appointments and closed up the shop. She checked her phone to see two texts from Daphne:

‘3 works! I’ll let K know :-)’ and ‘Ok if Mingo comes over tonight?’

Bay replied that it was okay with her and headed to her bus stop, looking forward to spending a bit of her evening with her sister and her sister’s boyfriend. She fiddled with her phone in boredom, going back to the email from Emmett. Bay swallowed hard, figuring it only had affected her so much because of her dream.

She needed to get her mind off things.

Bay arrived home to hear Daphne’s infectious laughter coming from the living room. She tore off her leather jacket and rounded the corner to see her sister and Mingo cuddled up on the corner of the couch.

Daphne looked up and smiled once she noticed Bay, swinging her legs around to stand.

“Mingo brought some peanut butter cookies. Wanna try one?” Daphne didn’t wait for an answer before she scurried into the kitchen.

“Energetic, isn’t she?” Bay mumbled to Mingo. He chuckled and sat up, peering past Bay to make sure Daphne wasn’t paying attention.

“Apparently Red’s midterm didn’t go so well,” he disclosed, rubbing his hands together. “You know how she hates Scantrons. I’m trying to take her mind off it.”

“Mission accomplished,” Bay observed. “I won’t ask her about it.” She was glad Daphne was with a guy who cared so much about her. They were definitely an ‘opposites attract’ type of couple and it worked perfectly for them.

Daphne came back around and handed Bay a crumbly cookie.

“It looks good,” Bay said.

“Courtesy of the tuck shop by my dorm,” Mingo explained. “I don’t like coming over empty-handed.”

“How was your day?” Daphne asked, focusing on Bay as she settled back onto their foam couch. Bay’s brown eyes darted between Daphne and Mingo as she offered a small smile.

“The usual,” Bay sighed, eager to spill everything to Daphne once they were alone. She took a bite of her cookie. “Only two criers. And a fainter.”

“That’s the usual?” Mingo asked. “Is it really that painful?”

“Depends where you get it. And what your pain tolerance is,” Bay told him, realizing just how often she’d said that in her profession. “People faint when they haven’t eaten enough and get light-headed. Happens too often.”

Mingo only pursed his lips and looked to the side, nodding solemnly.

“Uh oh. He only makes that face when he’s planning something,” Daphne acknowledged.

“I’m simply considering it,” he shrugged, smirking at his girlfriend. “I have been for a little while.”

“I’ll go before I do any more damage,” Bay announced, dusting the crumbs off her hands.

After making herself a bowl of ramen noodles, Bay sat atop her bed and turned on her laptop. She automatically went to Netflix to unwind with dinner, but found her thoughts tugging her back to that email.

That was it. She’d just reply. It didn’t need to be thought over a million times.

Bay opened another tab and went to her email. She hit reply on the one Emmett had sent six hours ago and began to type.

‘Hi, Emmett.’

Was that a good starter? Maybe she should use a nickname to keep it casual and friendly?

The memory of Skye calling Emmett ‘Em’ rushed back to Bay, making her scoff to herself.

No. It was fine. Casual and friendly.

‘These photos are really cool. Nagoya looks amazing! As for the shirt, no comment.’

Bay smirked to herself. If she was being honest, it flattered her that the word ‘fierce’ reminded Emmett of her.

‘Work has been great. Inking Jordan DeVille really got my name out there. I had a client about a month ago who wanted a water tower tattoo.’

Bay navigated to Bombshell Betty’s Instagram and found the photo she was looking for.

‘I attached a pic of the finished product. Was very proud of how it came out. As for designs, I’ve been really gravitating towards marine imagery. Scuba divers, pearl oysters, octopi. That kind of thing.’

Was Emmett going to show this email to Travis? Did Travis even know that Emmett emailed her?

Don’t overthink it, Bay.

‘What’s been your favorite city so far?’

She chewed on her lip. Does she need to end with a question? It was just general email practice. Why not?

Bay ended the email with her name and sent it before letting herself think about it anymore.

Once she turned on her reruns and started eating, she could hear intermittent bursts of Daphne’s laughter. Bay was glad her sister was with someone who made her so happy. Mingo really knew how to get Daphne’s mind off things, which was no easy feat.

By the time Mingo shouted a goodbye to Bay through the door, Bay was slowly drifting off to sleep. She heard Daphne and her boyfriend exchanging ‘I love yous,’ which made her smile for her sister, as she rested her head on her mattress. She began to doze off…

That is, until her laptop alerted her that she had a new message.

Through heavy lids, she tapped the alert to see that Emmett had written her back already.


	2. Chapter 2

Bay sat up to read Emmett’s latest message to her.   
  
‘That tattoo is so cool! Right when I read ‘marine,’ I imagined a mermaid version of Hammer Girl. Or possibly a pirate version. But holding one of those tiny curved swords doesn’t seem as badass as a huge mallet.’

Bay chuckled.

‘My favorite place has been this city called Nara. The ancient temples there were amazing. I attached some photos of it.’

Bay navigated to the attachments and clicked. She looked through the several images of cherry blossom trees and breathtaking architecture. She read on.

‘But every city has its charm. What’s up in KC?’

There was a knock on Bay’s door and she looked up just as Daphne popped her head in.

“You must be hungry,” Daphne said.

“You live with me for a year and a half and you suddenly think you know me?” Bay joked. Daphne chuckled and rolled her eyes.

“Want to make some pizza?” Daphne asked. Her green eyes studied the back of Bay’s laptop. “Or are you busy?”

“N-no,” Bay stammered, suddenly nervous. She looked back at her screen. “Just… writing an email.”

“Oh!” Daphne smiled.

“To… Emmett.”

“Emmett?” Daphne’s eyebrows furrowed.

Bay gave her sister a half-smile. Daphne crossed her arms and pointed her chin, awaiting an explanation. Bay got up off her bed and filled Daphne in as they paced back to the kitchen. Daphne only offered a nod once Bay finished.

“That’s all you’re giving me?” Bay mumbled. Daphne shrugged and turned to open a cupboard.

Bay felt a flicker of frustration build up in her chest. She waited for Daphne to turn back around.

_ Are you judging me? _ Bay signed.

Daphne shook her head, putting a can of tomato sauce on the counter.

“You know I just don’t want to see you get hurt. Again.”

“He and I are friends,” Bay said. “He emailed me asking what’s up and I replied. You think I’d get back together with him after everything?”

“He _ did  _ say he regretted letting you go,” Daphne mentioned. “Maybe he’s trying to… start things up again.”

Bay nervously looked away. She remembered that night; the regret and pain in Emmett’s face when he told her he never should have broken up with her. Telling Daphne about it afterwards almost made her cry again. Hell, even reminiscing about it almost made her cry again.

“Nothing’s going to happen,” Bay finally said. “I just feel like Emmett and I have gone through too much to just… never speak again. And if he is hoping to date again… well, that’s too bad for him.”

“Okay.” Daphne’s lips formed a thin line. Bay knew Daphne was just looking out for her. She had a protective streak and simply wanted to keep her sister from getting hurt. But, damn, if it wasn’t frustrating sometimes.

“Now, let’s make some pizza,” Bay said.

The next morning, Bay awoke to an empty apartment and immediately knew she was in no mood to make breakfast. She threw on a pair of jeans and a comfortable sweater and made her way down to the Cracked Mug.

She walked in to see that Oliver, the new barista Regina had hired, was manning the counter. The cafe wasn’t exactly bustling, but it definitely had a healthy amount of patrons. The large glass skylight was covered in small droplets of rain, offering a more homey feel to the place.

Bay eyed the far hallway to see if she could check in with Regina. She made her way towards the back when Regina stepped out of her office while wrapping a scarf around her neck.

“Bay, hi!” Regina’s brown eyes twinkled. “How are you?”

“Good! Just wanted to grab a small breakfast.”

“Trying to shake me down for a family discount?” Regina joked. Bay chuckled.

“No, I actually wanted to check in with you. How’s Will?”

While Regina taking in Will was quite overwhelming news, Bay found herself to be fairly calm during the whole situation. Even though she did have a mini freakout to Daphne about how sudden everything was, it wasn’t all that difficult to accept Regina’s choice to fight to become Will’s legal guardian. Once Regina had explained everything to her and the Kennishes, it seemed like the right thing to do. And Bay had learned to love additions to the family.

“Getting settled in school.” Regina nodded. “The transition has been a little tough but… he’s a tough kid. How’s work been for you, honey?”

“Good. Lots of responsibility. And the cafe?”

“Doing well. This new guy is good with customers and a fast learner.” Regina subtly pointed in his direction. “Now if only he’ll learn to not text on the job. Or at least hide it better.”

Bay looked over her shoulder to see the shaggy haired guy’s eyes darting around the cafe before glancing down under the counter.

“Yeah, not exactly inconspicuous, is he?” Bay chuckled. 

“Not a bit.” Regina stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets. “I’m heading to the grocery store while it’s not busy. I can pick something up for you and Daphne if you girls need anything?”

“We’re good, thanks.” Bay smiled. “I’ll see you around. You’ll be with us on Christmas Eve, right?”

“Absolutely.” Regina squeezed Bay’s shoulder. “Bye, hon.”

Bay made her way to the counter, eyeing the treats behind the glass display case.

“Hey,” Oliver said. “Bay? You’re Regina’s daughter, right?”

“Right,” Bay answered. She’d only been in once before while this cute guy was working, so he definitely  _ was  _ a fast learner. At least when it came to names and faces.

He nodded with a toothy grin.

“Well, let me know when you’re ready.”

Oliver quickly turned his attention back to under the counter, prompting Bay to lean a little closer to the cash register.

“Word to the wise,” she mumbled. “Texting’s a bit frowned upon. It helps to turn around or not look at the screen so much.”

“Oh,” Oliver shyly chuckled, bringing up a notepad and pencil. Bay cocked her head in interest.

“Not texting,” Oliver clarified. “But, thanks for the tip. I zone out and... forget to not be so obvious sometimes.” He tucked the notebook in his pocket and rested his hands on the counter.

“No… problem. You can probably just use the counter. Say you’re doing inventory if anyone asks.” Bay let her curiosity lead the way. “What are you writing?”

“Lately, short stories.” Oliver’s brown eyes went back to the counter. “I’ve encountered lots of different types of people with this job and it’s… struck inspiration.”

“I get it. I'm an artist, too,” Bay boasted.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, I work at a tattoo parlour in town. Bombshell Betty’s.”

“You’re kidding. I got this there a few years ago.” Oliver rolled up a sleeve of his shirt, revealing a tattoo of a small hieroglyphic character.

“Sweet!” Bay cocked her head to study the ink, but Oliver quickly concealed it again with his shirt. They shared a moment of quiet eye contact.

“I should order,” Bay said.

“Sure,” Oliver smoothly said. “What can I get for you?”

After getting her favourite Cracked Mug combo, a large coffee and a mixed berry muffin, Bay realized she had some time before having to catch the bus for work. She sat in an unoccupied corner, sipping on her beverage and scrolling through her phone. Bay glanced back up in Oliver’s direction to see him taking her advice, his moppy brown hair blocking the few of his surely concentrated face as he continued to scratch in his notebook on the counter.

He intrigued Bay; she knew that for sure. But then again, she always loved meeting people who were creatively inclined. And the fact that he was quite cute definitely helped.

Bay turned her attention back to her phone, her thumb dancing over her screen. She remembered the email Emmett had sent the previous night and flattened her lips together once she opened it.

‘What’s up in KC?’

After looking at the photos Emmett sent of Nara again, Bay began to type.

‘These photos are awesome. The trees don’t even look real! I’m jealous.’

Bay immediately erased the last sentence. Jealous probably wasn’t the best word to use.

‘I’m amazed.’

She took a sip of her coffee, considering if she should ask about if he’d be adding any of the photos to his portfolio. But she didn’t even know if he was keeping one up. If he was still pursuing a career in photography. She realized that she hadn’t felt like she’d known anything about him since the mental breakdown he’d had earlier that year.

Thinking about it made Bay’s stomach drop. While she’d told herself Emmett was a heartless jerk after their break-up, learning that he was in such a bad place that he even considered… what he considered doing to himself, she realized just how much she still cared about him. The last thing Bay ever wanted to do was make excuses for him, but she couldn’t stop wondering if that awful day when he ended things with her at the beach was just a result of the terrible shape his mental health was in.

Bay sighed. She didn’t want to relive this. She didn’t want to still be the person who held grudges. Why couldn’t she just write an email without this whole pathetic trip down memory lane?

Bay sighed. So much for not overthinking things.

Maybe Daphne was right. Talking to Emmett was risky. It was dredging up the past. And she wouldn’t email him back. That was that.

Just then, an alert popped up on her screen. Her heart sank.

‘Reminder: MRI. Friday at noon.’

She had completely forgot about the medical test she had set up for herself months ago. Every time the terrifying possibility of aneurysm crossed her mind, she felt her veins freeze with fear.

She’d been doing a good job avoiding it. Until now.

Whatever. She’d deal with that on Friday.

After eating her small breakfast and catching a few glances at Oliver, Bay made her way to the bus stop. She felt her phone vibrate in her coat pocket and her mind immediately went to Emmett again. All the guy did was sent a couple emails and now he wasn’t leaving her head. Great.

Bay pulled out her phone to see that Noelle had sent her a text.

‘Won’t be coming in today. Just called my appointments and cancelled. Hope that’s okay.’

Bay sighed. 

It seemed it didn’t matter if it was okay. She had to handle it whether she wanted to or not.

She was halfway into her Wednesday once the bitterness over being alone at the shop finally started wearing off. Sure, it was great that Noelle completely trusted her with everything, but it seemed that she’d started to take Bay for granted. Texting on the day of that she wouldn’t be coming into work wasn’t the coolest thing to do.

Bay shook her head at the hypothetical situation of Noelle asking her to come in tomorrow, Bay’s first day off in a while. As much as she appreciated the mentorship and opportunity Noelle had given her, she deserved some time for herself.

She was organizing the small case of post-tattoo ointments that sat by the entrance doors when she felt her phone vibrate yet again. With a lump in her throat, Bay checked the screen to see that Daphne had just texted her.

‘Guess who aced her midterm!!!’

Bay smiled at the photo Daphne had sent of a 90% grade on a computer screen. It  _ was  _ like her sister to worry about a test that she ultimately did amazing on. A wave of pride rushed over Bay as she texted back.

‘GOOD JOB!!! So proud. Celebrating tonight with Lao Sze? On me.’ Bay found herself already excited for their Chinese food dinner; it had become a routine to order in from Lao Sze whenever they had something to commemorate. The delicious cuisine always reminded them of their time in China and best of all, the restaurant had lots of vegetarian options.

Daphne replied quickly after with an enthusiastic yes and a bunch of emojis.

The rest of the day went by quite slowly for Bay, and ended up being way more overwhelming without Noelle than she’d expected. Once she was finally locking up for the day, she felt the tension that’d been sitting on her shoulders all day lift. She couldn’t wait to get home, put on a pair of sweatpants, and pig out on Chinese food.

The bus dropped her off by the apartment right on schedule, and Bay made her way down the street, boots clicking on the sidewalk. The afternoon offered misty air, which Bay particularly loved. She kept her gaze on the fallen leaves and thin blanket of snow, constructing a watercolor piece of leaves in her head.

“Hey.”

Bay glanced up, pulled out of her imagination. It was Oliver, who was slowly stepping towards her. He stopped at the edge of the sidewalk and squinted.

“Don’t tell me I just interrupted a creative train of thought.”

“How’d you know?” Bay half-chuckled, moving towards the edge of the sidewalk to clear the way.

“Damn, sorry.” He looked down and pressed his lips together, flashing shallow dimples. Bay hadn’t noticed them before.

“It’s all good,” Bay quickly said. “What’s up?”

“Just finished my shift,” Oliver answered, pointing behind him to the coffee shop around the corner. He put his hands in the pockets of his beige jacket. “I’m guessing the same for you?”

Bay nodded. A gust of wind blew her long, dark tresses in her face.

“How was it?”

“It wasn’t… terrible.”

“I…” Oliver chuckled quietly. “I genuinely almost just recommended the oatmeal chocolate cookie for that.”

“Safe to say you might be working too much,” Bay laughed. “Has it been busy?”

“Yeah, I think the cold weather is bringing more people in.” Bay nodded gladly, happy to hear the good business news. She took in just how much Oliver towered over her as he glanced at the street. She studied him, assuming he was probably a couple of years older than her. “But I’m not gonna complain. Especially to the boss’ daughter.”

“That might be wise,” Bay teased.

“The barista profession, it’s all a game of politics.” Bay laughed again, genuinely enjoying their repertoire. This Oliver guy was certainly charismatic. And loved to talk.

“Well, it was cool bumping into you,” Bay said, shivering underneath her coat. “But I should go; my sister’s waiting for me.”

“Of course.” Oliver gave her another bright smile. “See you around.”

Bay nodded and continued down the sidewalk, the smirk on her face refusing to fade. The exciting feeling of a new crush stirred in her chest, making Bay admittedly giddy. It’d been a long time since she felt that.

Once she entered her warm apartment and greeted Daphne, who was sprawled out on the couch with a textbook, Bay changed into her comfiest clothes and sat in their living room chair.

“How’s my genius student doing?” Bay excitedly signed to her fatigued-looking sister.

“I really thought I bombed that test. Honestly.” Daphne smiled and shut her textbook.

“I know,” Bay said with a smug smile. “Mingo told me.”

Daphne rolled her eyes and shook her head, unsuccessfully masking her pleasure.

“He’s a really sweet guy, taking your mind off things,” Bay approved. “Speaking of guys, have you met Regina’s new hire, Oliver? He’s nice. And cute.”

“And your type?”

“I don’t have a type,” Bay mumbled.

“Passionate. Blunt. Probably a tortured artist in some way,” Daphne numbered off.

“You got me there.” Daphne shot a satisfied smirk. “And he _ is _ a writer.”

Daphne laughed, sitting up straight.

“How was work?” Daphne asked.

“Well, it started off just totally freakin’ awesome,” Bay sarcastically muttered. “Noelle texted me in the morning that she just… wasn’t coming in.”

“She can do that?”

“She owns the place. She can do whatever she wants.” Bay sighed. “You know what? I need some Gong Bao chicken so I can rant without possibly exploding.”

“Let’s order,” Daphne agreed.

Once they were sprawled out on the couch with takeout containers and Netflix playing on the television, Bay revelled in her comfort. Once she’d finished her last bite, Bay paused to ask Daphne if she’d like tea. Another celebratory tradition.

After Daphne requested chamomile, Bay quickly made them a couple of cups and snuggled back into her spot, taking sips of her hot tea as she focused on the screen.

About ten minutes later, once the credits at the end of the episode rolled, Daphne looked over to her sister in amazement.

“I love this show,” Daphne said.

“I told you you would.”

“One more episode?”

“Let’s go for it,” Bay agreed. “It’s only 9. Man, sci fi and lemon tea is the perfect combination.”

“Yeah,” Daphne chuckled. “Wait. Lemon?”

“Yes.” Bay raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“You mean… did you use the lemon tea in that little box on the side of the cupboard?”

Bay put the mug on the table to be able to sign with both hands.

“What are you about to tell me?” Bay muttered.

“That’s cold remedy tea,” Daphne said with a small chuckle. “It’s going to make you really sleepy.”

Bay glanced down her mug, seeing that she almost drank the whole thing.

“Serious?”

“It’s fine; you said you don’t work tomorrow, right?” Daphne remembered. “It’ll just give you a really deep and long sleep… which you need.”

“You know, sometimes I feel like I’ve truly reached adulthood, but then stuff like this happens. Apparently, I ingest things without reading the box.”

Daphne chuckled, waving dismissively.

“It’s okay. It’s like accidentally taking a nighttime Tylenol… an extra-strength nighttime Tylenol. That might make you loopy.”

“Fantastic. Don’t be surprised if I pass out.”

About halfway into the next episode, Bay started to feel tired and a little dizzy. Her breaths started to get deeper and she nuzzled against the couch pillow, crossing her arms and yawning. She checked her phone to see it wasn’t even 10 yet, and knew if she fell asleep now, she’d probably wake up in the middle of the night, no matter how powerful this lemon tea was.

To keep herself awake, Bay fiddled around on her phone and went through different apps while watching the show. The last thing she remembered before falling asleep was scrolling through the #StreetArt tag on Instagram.

Bay’s first thought that Thursday morning was that her neck was sore. So, so sore. She shuffled around under the heavy quilt she was sure Daphne put on her and opened her eyes to see she was still on the living room couch. After yawning and stretching out her arms, Bay sat up and dug her phone out from between the sofa cushions to see that it was 9:17.

The first thing she saw was another calendar reminder about the MRI on Friday. She sighed and dismissed it.

Bay chuckled and moved onto her next notification. It was an image from her Mom of a big fox nuzzling a smaller one. Along with the message, ‘This is me hugging you :) Seize the day! Love you!’ Bay smiled and replied quickly with: ‘Adorable. Love you too mom!’

Next, she had an email. From Emmett. Bay swallowed hard. Did he email again because she didn’t reply fast enough for him? The thought frustrated her. He had no right to act that way if he was. She opened the email and her eyes immediately went to the bottom to see the dark red words in the email he was responding to.

That _ she _ sent? Last  _ night _ ?

Bay’s heart dropped once she realized she emailed Emmett. While on that weird lemon tea sedative. And she couldn’t even remember doing it.


	3. Chapter 3

Bay instinctively stood up, shocking her muscles out of their state of relaxation. She paced around the empty apartment, her phone tight in her grip. She demanded her brain to calm down. So, she basically drunk-emailed her ex. God, how strong was that freaking tea?

She felt her entire body boil with worry and agitation. Yeah, this ‘calming down’ thing wasn’t going to happen.

Bay shook her head and brought her phone back up to her face to read the email she’d sent.

‘From: Bay Kennish  
Sent: Wednesday 11:21 PM  
To: Emmett Bledsoe

Subject: RE: Hey

Whyy are you talking to me’

Bay closed her eyes and sighed. So much for not emailing him back. She gained the courage to look up at what Emmett had replied:

‘Everything okay? I’m sorry if you don’t like me emailing you. I won’t do it anymore.’

A groan escaped Bay’s lips. After getting over the initial anger at herself, she felt guilt set in. She imagined how terrible Emmett must’ve felt reading that. 

She reread his email. He probably thought she was downright nasty. Well, if he did, she didn’t blame him. That sentence she said certainly didn’t scream kindness and maturity.

Maybe this was a good thing. She wasn’t going to answer him anyway. With this sedative-induced email, it seemed to be pretty certain that he wasn’t going to contact her again.

Ugh. This was a mess. She _ did  _ wonder what his motives were when he emailed her, but if she was going to ask, this is how it had to happen?

Bay sighed again.  _ Motive _ . He wasn’t a con artist. He was just someone who she had a history with who wanted to keep her in his life.

That just made her feel worse about the situation.

Bay opened her chat window with Daphne, about to send her a block of text freaking out. But a notification from her mom sending her a smile popped up. Bay smirked, realizing that she hadn’t seen her mom in quite a while. What better time than now?

Bay typed: ‘Meet for lunch today?’

Her mom quickly texted back: ‘Definitely! The Bell Tower? 11?’

Bay took a second to daydream about the delicious fajitas they served at The Bell Tower. She eagerly responded to solidify their plans and had a small breakfast before getting ready.

A plus of having to bus everywhere was that Bay knew the Kansas City public transit system inside and out. She made it to The Bell Tower three minutes before 11 and held her thick red scarf over her mouth as she walked through the brisk fog. She saw Kathryn almost as soon as she walked into the establishment, sitting by a window and eyeing the menu with pursed lips.

Bay made her way to the table and was greeted by a big hug and a whiff of expensive perfume. She sat in the empty chair, smiling at her mom from across the table.

“I was so pleasantly surprised when you suggested lunch,” Kathryn said just loud enough to be heard over the chatter that filled the restaurant. “You look so nice.”

Bay smiled and looked down at her plain navy sweater and compared it to her mom’s beautiful patterned blouse.

“You, too. Event planning suits you.”

“Oh.” Kathryn waved a modest hand.

The waiter came around and took their drink and food orders. Right after, Bay started asking her mom about how business had been. She listened to Kathryn’s stories about nervous she was when she first started, how exciting observing the planning of wedding was, and how the company’s current project was some local businessman’s daughter’s 21st birthday party.

“I don’t know when I’ll be able to be on my own and get my own clients,” Kathryn explained, “but I think I’m learning fast. It feels… very natural to me.”

“That makes sense. Do you think you’re going to write anymore?” Bay asked.

“I think so.” Kathryn looked off into the distance. “I see myself publishing another book. When inspiration strikes. But I wouldn’t let it interfere with my job.”

“Good,” Bay replied. “Regina’s new barista wouldn’t be able to say the same. Apparently, he’s always writing in this little notebook at work.” Bay realized she had leaned in like she was sharing a juicy piece of gossip. She felt like one of her mom’s socialite friends. “Not- not that that’s a bad thing. It’s not even really interfering. He just does it when it’s slow.”

A coy smile formed on Kathryn’s face as her daughter defended this new guy.

“He have a name?” she asked. Bay comically rolled her eyes.

“Mom,” Bay chuckled, shaking her head at her own talkativeness. “So, do you like your co-workers?”

“They’re fine. Enough about me. How’s work for you?”

Bay complained to Kathryn the same way she did to Daphne the night before. She went on about her client, Mila, who could never make up her mind, and her boss who started acting more and more flakey, and how difficult it was at times to be a glorified therapist.

“I know every job has its flaws, but at the end of the day, I’m genuinely happy,” Bay said. She thanked the waiter when he dropped off their meals.

“I’m so glad to hear that,” Kathryn said. “I know when Pratt didn’t work out that you thought it was the… end of the world.”

Bay managed to offer a small smile. Thinking about the Pratt rejection still stung a bit, but it felt like ancient history at this point.

“Bottom line is: whenever it feels like the end, it’s not.”

“Right,” Bay agreed, looking down at the colourful vegetables on her plate.

“What else is new?” Kathryn asked. She took a bite of her pasta.

Bay immediately remembered her MRI scheduled for the next day. No part of her wanted to discuss it. She pushed the thought out of her mind.

“Well, this morning I woke up to… I’ll start at the beginning. So, Emmett emailed me-”

“How’s he doing? He okay?” Kathryn said softly.

Ever since Bay had filled her mom in on what brought Emmett back to KC that past spring, Kathryn had reacted to hearing his name the same way every time without fail. Her shoulders would droop, her eyebrows would turn down, and she’d tilt her head in concern. Bay was sure Emmett would hate watching someone react to him that way.

“He’s okay,” Bay said, not entirely sure if that was true. “He emailed me a couple of days ago and I replied and it was fine. Just friendly catching up. But then, last night, I accidentally drank one of Daphne’s cold remedy teas and it made me so loopy and I don’t even fully remember emailing him, but-”

“Bay, you know you can tell me when you drink, right? You’re of age and I’m not going to judge-”

“Mom. It was just tea,” Bay chuckled. Seemed like a mom’s job truly never  _ was _ done.

Bay pulled out her phone and navigated to the email exchange, watching her mom’s mouth bend into a nervous grimace.

“Yikes,” Kathryn whispered.

“I honestly  _ was _ wondering why he was emailing me… ugh, I just feel like crap.”

“Well, this isn’t unfixable.” Kathryn handed back Bay’s phone. “Unless… you don’t want to fix it?”

“I don’t know.” Bay felt like she was in high school again. Agonizing over a boy. The same boy she agonized over then. “I just… feel bad.”

Kathryn frowned.

“Change of subject,” Bay asserted. “How’s Dad?”

“Good. Close to accepting the fact that he can’t have my famous buttery, high-cholesterol mashed potatoes this Christmas.”

“He can’t? Not even a little bit?”

“You sound just like him.” Kathryn smiled. “I can’t wait for Christmas. We haven’t all been together in a while.”

Bay excitedly nodded in agreement.

After finishing their meal, Bay took her mom up on her offer to drive her back home on her way to the office. Although Bay typically liked taking the bus, as it gave her time to think, the last place she wanted to spend her time in right now was her mind.

She was in and out of her apartment, picking up her sketchbook and heading to the park that was a ten minute walk away. Once Bay dusted the soft snow off a bench in the park, she rested the large block of parchment on her lap and tapped the eraser at the end of her pencil against the page.

Putting her hair in a bun atop her head, Bay looked ahead at the landscape. White snow covered almost every inch of the park. She watched as a man playfully jogged away from a toddler, who was chasing him and laughing.

“I’m gonna get you!” the girl shouted, the pompom on her hat bouncing with every small stride she took. Bay smiled to herself as the father pretended to run out of breath and slowed down, allowing his daughter to slap his leg.

“You’re it!” she shouted, laughing as she took off in front of him.

Bay’s heart filled with love as she thought of Angelo. He crossed her mind every day. She swallowed hard, wiping a tear away as she turned her attention back to her scrapbook. She’d accepted what had happened to her biological father, but thinking about it still had the power to make her cry sometimes.

Bay put in her earbuds and listened to slow guitar as the beautiful sights inspired her to sketch the image of snowflakes that swam in her head the day before. She got to work, drifting into another world. The leaves slowly turned into waves, as she constructed a drawing of land meeting sea.

Bay assumed she’d been drawing for almost two hours when she saw a small snowflake drop and quickly melt on her paper. She glanced up to see soft snow beginning to fall. She looked back down at her piece, her brain suddenly reminding her of the romantic dream she’d had about Emmett just a few nights ago.

Before she could think anymore, Bay quickly packed up her things and scurried out of the park towards the apartment. Once she reached the building hallway, strands of her hair were stuck to her face from the melted snow.

She opened the door, shivering and dropping her bag on the floor. She kicked off her boots and started to peel off her jacket when she saw Daphne sitting at the kitchen island, doing what looked like homework.

Once Bay put her bag back into her bedroom and put on some dry socks, she went to the kitchen and waved to get Daphne’s attention. She was met with tired green eyes and an unimpressed expression.

“Hey. You won’t believe what your weird tea did to me. I emailed Emmett something like, super rude,” Bay spilled. She’d been waiting all day to tell Daphne about her embarrassing email. Daphne kept her solemn stare. “Are you okay?”

“You probably shouldn’t be talking to him,” Daphne stated.

“Um…” Bay wondered where this was suddenly coming from. “I already have two moms. Don’t need a third.”

“Where were you?”

Bay’s brows furrowed.

“What’s the problem?” Bay signed. “Did we have plans or something?”

“No.” Daphne scoffed. “You left the apartment unlocked.”

“Shit.” Bay felt her eyes widen as she looked around. “I’m… I’m sorry. Did someone come in? Did… anything get taken?” Today hadn’t been a good day for Bay’s mind; she was way too preoccupied and scattered.

“No.” Daphne flattened her lips. “But they could have. Easily. We have laptops and a TV and I have a ton of expensive textbooks in my room.”

“Okay… but…” Bay scratched her forehead. “Nobody came. And I doubt anybody would take all those heavy textbooks.”

“This isn’t a joke.”

“I’m not making it a joke. I ran in here probably around like, 1:30, so…” Bay looked up to the big clock hanging over their television to see that it was nearly 3:00. “It wasn’t unlocked for long.”

“That’s not what matters.” Daphne sighed and turned her attention back to her homework. Bay tapped her foot against the floor and shook her hand to get Daphne to look at her again. 

“Why are you being so mean about this?” Bay urged. “It was an accident.”

“I know and that’s okay, but I wish you wouldn’t imply that I’m ‘parenting’ you every time I bring up an issue.”

“Well, maybe, if you weren’t so patronizing, I wouldn’t imply that.”

“Seriously, Bay? Can’t I be upset about anything without you getting mad, too?”

“I don’t know. Can you?”

Bay just shook her head and turned away, storming to her bedroom. She shut her door and plopped down on her bed, feeling her eyes welling up. She and Daphne had certainly had their squabbles before, but being hounded by her sister for a little mistake after the week she’d had was the last thing she needed.

Daphne was probably stressed out. She _ could _ be a little curt when school was overwhelming her.

Bay scoffed to herself. That wasn’t an excuse. She was stressed, too and she wasn’t trying to parent Daphne.

It felt like everything was slowly going wrong. Her boss was a flake, she virtually snapped at her ex-boyfriend, and now her sister was angry at her. And, on top of all that, she had a hot date with an MRI machine to look forward to the next day.

Bay sighed to herself. She dug out her phone and reread Emmett’s email.

‘Everything okay? I’m sorry if you don’t like me emailing you. I won’t do it anymore.’

She began to type.

‘Hey, sorry about that.’

She stared at the blinking vertical line.

‘Long story, lol.’

She scrolled back up to the email he had sent before. And erased the ‘lol.’

‘Great photos!!! The trees are unreal.’

Bay glanced up at her ceiling and backspaced everything. There was no skirting past last night’s email. She considered telling him that she just wanted to know why he was emailing her. So, she did.

‘Hey, I’m sorry about that abrupt email. Honestly, I was kind of loopy after a cup of sleepytime tea and was curious about why you wrote me. But if I had a problem with you contacting me, I’d let you know.’

Bay paused to consider if she actually would’ve followed through with her original plan to never message him back. She didn’t want to go down that road. She kept typing.

‘These photos are really nice. I can’t imagine how much more beautiful these sights are in person.’

She remembered that he’d asked about how things were going in the city.

‘Winter here has been good so far. Mild. I spent some time at a park today to sketch. Then I got caught in some heavy snow.’

Bay reread her email. And without a second thought, hit Send. No more worrying about how she came off. She was an adult now. Not high school Bay. No matter how much it felt like it sometimes.

She wiped what was left of her tears and stepped out of her room, turning the corner with the intention to clear things up with Daphne. But the apartment was empty. Bay was quickly reminded that Thursday afternoons, Daphne had chemistry labs.

Bay decided to make crepes for dinner since the smell of them always comforted her by reminding her of Angelo. She hummed to herself as she whisked the batter, her heart still racing over the anxiety over her MRI tomorrow. She realized that she let the entire day pass without letting anyone know about it. It wasn’t intentional; it was just that talking about it meant acknowledging that something could be wrong with her brain and… although she was trying to act like an adult, accepting that was still hard.

Bay decided she’d tell Daphne about it after the appointment. And the rest of her family soon after. But for now, she was okay with keeping it to herself.

The chime of a Facebook message sounded and Bay looked over at her phone, which she left charging on the counter. Setting down the bowl, she tip-toed to read the notification.

‘Greg Shimingo: Hey, Bay. Ha, that rhymes. Bet you’ve never heard that one before. I was hoping you could do me a solid…’

Bay raised an eyebrow. Greg who?

She pursed her lips, then chuckled to herself as soon as she remembered that it was Mingo. She swiped open the message.

‘I was hoping you could do me a solid. I’ve been thinking (emphasis: THINKING) about getting a tattoo and thought who could I trust more than my girlfriend’s sister? Also, you’re the only tattoo artist I know.’

What a charmer.

‘Can I visit your shop sometime for a consultation? And I know this is a long shot, but is there any way we can do this without telling Daphne? I kind of want it to be a surprise.’

Bay bit her bottom lip in thought. She turned back to the batter, whisking some more as she considered his question. She was on board until he brought up not telling Daphne… what could have he planned? Her name?

No. He was crazy, but not that crazy.

She was between a rock and a hard place. Well… if she didn’t tell Daphne, she was simply maintaining client confidentiality and helping out a friend. But, she was also keeping Daphne, her sister, in the dark.

Whatever. It was his body and if she wasn’t inking him, somebody else would be.

Bay went back to her phone and replied.

‘Sure. I’ll message you my availability tomorrow. And your secret’s safe with me.’

After she made the crepes, which was way more difficult to do than she remembered, Bay settled in front of the television to watch some Netflix. 

It was about 6 p.m. when she heard the front door open. Bay quickly stood to move her dirty dishes to the sink, not realizing just how long she’d been sitting in front of the tv.

She and Daphne shared a second of awkward eye contact. The fight they had quickly resurfaced to Bay’s memory, and although she felt a tinge of frustration, she was more motivated to resolve it than anything.

I’m really sorry I left the door unlocked. That was thoughtless of me , Bay signed.  I ’ll double check next time. And… I know I can be way too defensive sometimes. I’ll work on that.

Bay bit the inside of her cheek. It was during moments of fear or restlessness, moments when she really considered her mortality, that Bay realized just how important the people in her life were. And she wasn’t about to let a fight carry on just because of her pride.

“I overreacted,” Daphne said as she swung her backpack forward and let it drop to the floor. “I shouldn’t have been so hard on you about it. I get stressed and… sometimes patronizing. I’m sorry.”

Bay shook her head understandingly and stepped towards Daphne with outstretched arms. They shared a long hug.

“You know I’m always here for you, right?” Daphne asked. Bay pulled back in confusion.

“Yeah,” Bay said quietly. “Same. Uh, I made crepes. But ate them all. I can make another batch?”

Daphne offered a wrinkled-nose smile.

“Please do.”

Bay listened to Daphne talk about how stressful class had been due to her careless lab partner. Apparently, he still hadn’t gotten out of the habit of talking while looking away. Bay shook her head in disbelief and listened intently until Daphne finally felt like she finally got everything off her chest.

“Great crepes, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Bay said. “Today, I… was reminded of Angelo and… you know that making crepes always makes me remember him positively. Instead of how everything was at the end.”

Bay looked down, once again thinking of her MRI. The word ‘aneurysm’ lit up in her head like a warning sign, making her heart feel like it was shaking with anxiety. Daphne put a warm, comforting hand on Bay’s shoulder.

“You’re the strongest person I know,” Daphne said softly.

Bay looked up at Daphne and offered her a thankful smile.

“Anyway,” Bay said, awkwardly chuckling. “You wanna watch some tv before you inevitably leave me to do your homework?”

“Our usual. I’d love to.”

The rest of Bay’s evening went well and she fell asleep with more peace in her head than fear. Whatever was going to happen… was going to happen.

The next day, Bay went into work with an optimistic mindset. She’d get her few appointments out of the way, go to the medical imaging clinic during the lunch hour that she freed for herself, then would go back to the shop to finish up her Friday and set out to have a good weekend.

Noelle was already at the front desk, typing away on the computer.

“Morning,” Noelle mumbled, not looking up.

“Hey,” Bay said, still feeling a bit sour over her boss’ recent behavior. She went straight to her chair, setting up for the day. She checked her availability and booked a consultation with Mingo over the phone: Tomorrow at 11:00.

After Bay dealt with three clients, Mila came in for her scheduled consultation. Bay braced herself for her indecisive client and kindly gestured to her seat. Mila was her last client before Bay’s appointment, so she hoped this would go faster than usual.

Mila sat down with pressed lips. Once Bay got out the notebook, her client nervously looked down at the page and interlaced her fingers.

“How are you today?” Bay asked sweetly.

“I’m… good.” Mila scratched the back of her neck. “Listen… I really appreciate all you’ve done for me, and I wanted to ask this over the phone, but… I just kept putting it off. Um, I was wondering if I could… swap to Noelle?”

“Swap?” Bay echoed.

“Yeah. Maybe she can… take my tattoo from here.”

Bay cleared her throat and cocked her head, looking over to Noelle, who was on the phone at the front counter.

“Really?” Bay asked. Mila didn’t answer.

Was this lady serious? After all the consultations she put Bay through? She wanted to switch over to Noelle’s chair and probably scrap all the work Bay had done for her?

“I’ll go, uh, talk to her,” Bay announced.

Bay dropped the notebook to the floor and stormed over to Noelle with clenched fists. Noelle looked up, confirming an appointment on the phone before hanging up.

“Mila over there,” Bay muttered quietly, her eyes darting to the client’s direction, “wants you to take over her tattoo.”

“Huh?” Noelle raised her eyebrows.

“She’d like to _ swap _ ,” Bay scornfully said. 

“I see,” Noelle whispered, leaning forward. “Hey, don’t take it personally.”

Was she seriously trying to give Bay advice? Now?

“You’re right. If she wants to forget all the work I’ve done for her …” Bay bit her tongue. “Sorry. Are you able to take her on?

_ You should probably warn her about how flaky you are,  _ Bay wanted to say.

“I…” Noelle sighed, shooting a careful gaze at Mila. “I can. I’ll go over there in a minute.”

“Great.” Bay turned and paced back towards Mila. “She’s all yours.” She plastered on the biggest smile she could, sure she was being totally transparent, and grabbed her jacket and bag.

“I… have an appointment to get to.” She looked at Mila again, and then Noelle. “I’ll be back by 1:00.” Bay made a beeline for the door. 

As soon as the door shut behind her, it took all of Bay’s strength not to cry.


End file.
